FOXBOROUGH, Mass.—My 23rd NFL training camp visit was a home game for me, about 45 minutes by car, with Mike Vrabel’s revamped Patriots. Here’s what we found out from the Boston suburbs …
• One thing that’s apparent watching New England in the preseason is the play style that Vrabel is looking for, and had with his best Tennessee teams. There are a few players who have thrived in Vrabel’s system and may be a little better and further along than the general public would expect. One is linebacker Christian Elliss. The team matched an offer sheet the Raiders put in on him—a two-year, $13.5 million deal—betting on his athleticism, versatility and program fit, and it looks like they hit on that one with the 26-year-old. Another is safety Jaylinn Hawkins, who will turn 28 in a few days and spent his first four NFL years bouncing on and off waivers with the Falcons and Chargers. Like Elliss, he’s improving, playing fast and zeroing in on a starting role in the defense.
• The receiver room is interesting, too. Stefon Diggs is back after his ACL injury. (He’s ahead of schedule and has done everything that’s been asked of him, but sometimes the first year returning from that injury can be bumpy.) The good news is that the depth around him seems to have improved. Both 24-year-old DeMario Douglas and 23-year-old Efton Chism III have shown the aforementioned play style, and fit in the slot (and they’re different types of slot receivers) in the Josh McDaniels offense. Kayshon Boutte, 23, has had a strong summer after a so-so spring. So, if Diggs comes along, and a couple of the young guys hit, the skill positions around Drake Maye should be good, with Hunter Henry reliable at tight end, and the running back unit looking like the best position group on the team (TreVeyon Henderson has a chance to be lethal as a pass-game back, and Rhamondre Stevenson and Antonio Gibson are proven commodities).
• The offensive line would then be a swing factor, and that’s where the Patriots have the most unanswered questions, with less than three weeks left before the opener. Whether he becomes a 10-year mainstay at the position (a lot of teams saw him as a guard coming out), Will Campbell ought to be a significant upgrade at left tackle and has proven to be another good fit for Vrabel’s program. Mike Onwenu and Morgan Moses, presuming good health, will hold down the right side. The uncertainty here is at the other two spots, where the Patriots are cycling players through at left guard and center, and still have to figure out who will line up against the Raiders on Sept. 7 from the group of Jared Wilson, Garrett Bradbury, Cole Strange and Ben Brown.
• As for Maye, there’s plenty to be excited about. The intangible part of the equation is unquestioned, as is his talent. But there’s still plenty of development to be expected, with Maye already on his second NFL head coach and offensive coordinator. Maye got off to a flying start in camp, but has hit some bumps since, and last week’s practices in Minnesota reflected that (the first day was great, but on the second day, the Vikings defense got the Patriots offense). That’s not all bad. The general idea for McDaniels and Maye is to identify what he does well in the offense and get the game to slow down a little for him, which will make him a better decision-maker. Another point of emphasis is getting him to be more judicious on taking hits outside the pocket, which usually takes some time with quarterbacks possessing Maye’s physical traits.
• Finally, I do think the Patriots will be better this season. They’ve gotten their heads above water in some areas where they were drowning in recent years, but this is going to be a process. Depth is still an issue. The lost draft classes of the past few years—players who’d be in their second, third, fourth and fifth years—have taken a toll on the overall state of the roster. Once the normal NFL injury toll hits, there could be problems. The program, again, looks to be on the way up, based on camp and preseason games and the overall feel of the place. However, this wasn’t a single offseason rebuild that Vrabel walked into with Eliot Wolf, Ryan Cowden and John Streicher leading the personnel side. The roster isn’t where Tennessee’s was when the coach got there in 2018, so I expect a bounce from this team. But the real jump, if I am making a guess, is probably a year away.
This article was originally published on www.si.com as Patriots Training Camp: 5 Top Takeaways From New England Visit.
